Yogscast: There can only be one winner
by Curls101
Summary: "Notch forbid the gods of Minecraft get bored again." The news spreads through out Tekkitopia - Ridge has done it again - he has created another survival games and pairs have begun to be taken. With twists to the regular Survival Games resume, Ridge is truly out to take their lives and their sanity. Contains my OC Pandora Cover image by the amazing Silverpaw on DeviantART.
1. Intro

**There can only be one winner: Intro**

Pandora rubbed the night from her eyes, almost vocalising her disapproval at the sun's untimely arrival in a less than polite manner, forcing herself out of her bed. She looked over to the other side of the room to see that Duncan's bed was empty and still freshly made. It was more than likely that Duncan had ignored the beckons of the night and had continued to work on whatever he was doing. Pandora shook her head, his projects would kill him one of these days and she'd be there to say "I told you so".

She quickly slipped into her riding boots and hunting jacket, grabbing a pouch of musket ammo and tying it to her belt for easy access. Then she grabbed the gun herself, Ol` Faithful, and swung it over her shoulder. Finally, she felt somewhat prepared and with a familiar chime, she activated her flying ring and soared out of the hole in the window. Pan had set up her stables just outside the castle. It seemed like years ago they'd made a bargain. Duncan would teach her the ways of science if she bred him a Nightmare like the one she already had. Her aim wasn't far off and she admitted that learning from Lalna the mad scientist was fun. The hardest part was trying to create the peace she wanted so badly.

It had been a terrible idea to set the nuke under Blackrock castle but it had already been done before Pan had even got there. The fire had been set before there was any means to stop it. Now, all Pan could do was try to repair what was broken. Rythian, the master of magic, and herself were friends. She went over to Blackrock whenever she could for a chat, a few magic lessons and a good old fashioned bitching session. Zoey often joined in too and seemed interested in Pan's horses. So much, in fact, her precious Nightmare was named after her. She new if anyone could fix this mess before the war began, it was wise-intentioned Zoey and herself. It was clear Rythian had feelings for his red-headed apprentice. He'd even told Pan as such on one occasion. If she stood between frightful Lalna and vengeful Rythian, he'd stop his mad vendetta and peace would be restored. Pandora was just there to help it along.

She set herself down lightly on the soft earth, checking every shadow for Creepers, Spiders or worse, Endermen. They were the one thing she struggled to fight. How were you meant to shoot something that disappeared whenever you aimed at it? The noise they made terrified her too. Her stables were far from elaborate. There was a little shack that the Horses could retreat too when it rained but otherwise her horses roamed free in a large paddock, enclosed by wooden fences. A few noticed her approach and raised their heads from the patch of grass they were currently nibbling on.

"Good morning, babies! How are you all?" she exclaimed, as she did every morning when she visited them. Pandora went about her morning tasks with mechanical ease. She refilled the water and made sure all of the horses were healthy. She muttered greetings and spoke to the horses as she worked. Duncan had once implied that she was certainly mad as none of the horses could talk back. Pan had confirmed this and said she didn't care.

Pandora had only bought one of her many horses from her Farmhouse, Shadowmere. It had been her first horse, with shimmering, midnight hair and eyes that could stare down Rythian if it so desired. She'd given her menacing gold armour that turned her from a gorgeous horse to a war horse. Nothing about Shadow was obvious and she liked the shadows behind the stables more than the sunlight of a bright day. Blood was her water and flesh was her sustenance. Pandora loved her more than any of the others but she'd never admit it.

"Good morning, Pan!" shouted a familiar voice from above her. A familiar blonde scientist in a dirtied lab coat leaned out of the first floor window that overlooked her pen. Pandora looked up and was instantly trapped by the endless pools that were his eyes. They always seemed so happy and carefree, like a summer's sky, no matter what burdens he carried. Whenever she met his eye-line, she was instantly lost, she could never hold a grudge against him no matter how hard she tried. Those eyes would just pull her in again.

"Ah, good to see you still have a concept of time! I often wonder if you can tell in that cave of yours!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms out wide to greet him. He broke out into a wide grin and shook his head.

"How's the horses?" he asked, breaking through yet another of his windows to greet her properly. Pandora was glad he asked, she had good news.

"Good. No health issues. Ry has stopped trying to kill Livid, Freckles is eating again; thank Notch; and Zippy Gonzales, or whatever you called your Zebra-"

"His name is Zippy." he interjected, landing in front of her and walking over to pet his Zebra. It had taken hours to find, riding around on Freckles the Cowhorse like madmen, apple in hand in the vain hope they would find one before nightfall. In the end, they found Zippy, who ran from Duncan so fast Pandora was desperate to call it Gonzales but it was his Zebra after all.

"Well, you'll actually find _he's _a _she_." she replied, smiling proudly, "and she's got a little one on the way. Do you know what that means?" she asked the scientist, who knew as much about Mo'Creatures horses as a blade of grass, as if she was speaking to a two year old. He shrugged , petting the mane of his prized Zebra as it chewed away at some feed.

"Nightmare?" he guessed, raising one of his eyebrows in question.

"Zorse." Pandora corrected, "Which I can turn into a Nightmare with an essence of fire, do you know what that means?" she asked again, raising an expectant eyebrow. Duncan stepped away from his pet and smiled.

"Nether trip?" he asked hopefully.

"Nether trip." Pan confirmed. Duncan couldn't hide his glee. He'd needed Ghast tears for ages but there was no point going unless both of them needed too. It saved two death-defying trips.

"I'll just finish up my research down in the Thaum-Cave then we'll head out. Sound good?" Duncan asked, his eyes gleaming like a small child asking to be driven to the sweet shop after school.

"So, tomorrow it is then! I've got some work.." she trailed off, spotting movement on the tree line. Normally, she'd dismiss this as a cat or some other friendly creature, but it was just far too tall. It looked awfully like...

"Pan? Is everything, ok?" he asked, trying to follow her eye-line. Clearly he saw what she did. A cloaked figure sat atop a horse on the tree line, as still as stagnant water. It was shrouded in darkness, mystery and intrigue.

"Friend of yours?" he managed to ask, not even noticing both of them were blatantly staring. He hadn't gone for his Red Matter katar simply because if Pan thought it was a threat, she'd have loaded and cocked her musket by now. Instead she seemed to be in an awestruck silence, her grey eyes staring at the figure as if it was doom itself brought before her.

"In a manner of speaking." she replied, her voice barely above a whisper, "Head down to the Thaum-Cave, I'll fetch you if anything becomes of this." She began to move forward but Duncan grabbed her arm,

"Pan..." he started to plead, wanting to go with her. His concern was touching but unnecessary. If this was what she thought it was, he should be worried for his own safety, not hers.

"Duncan, I'll be fine. It's an old friend." Still he didn't budge, "Duncan, go. I'll follow you down in a moment." He hesitated twice before flying away, and looked worriedly out of the window to see Pan approach the cloaked figure. He decided it was probably best if he obeyed her wishes and he disappeared through his portal.

Pandora swallowed as she reached the figure. She'd asked a favour of her old, mysterious friend months ago, fully wishing to never see them again. She just hoped they carried good news, not what she feared above all else. Notch forbid the gods of Minecraft get bored again. As she drew up next to the horse, she realized with a sense of envy that it was a Bat Horse. Much like Shadow but with wings. She'd tried for years to breed one but never succeeded but now was not the time for professional jealousy. The figure reached into the folds of their midnight cloak and pulled out a scroll. Pandora took it with trembling fingers, unwrapping the scroll nervously and scanned the text. She felt all of the blood rush to her head all at once and she felt like fainting. Any colour in her face had gone. She looked up to thank her friend for the warning but found they were gone. She hadn't even heard a sound but that wasn't exactly on top of her priority list.

Without any thought for the practicality of a flying ring, Pandora sprinted into the castle, through the mess of cobblestone corridors, and eventually she reached the sorting room. She threw herself through the portal, appearing out the other side. The hundreds of meters she'd travelled in under a second made her feel queasy.

"Duncan!" she exclaimed, resting her hands on her knees, gasping for breath. In one hand was a piece of paper. The one sent from an inside source she'd stationed long ago. "He's done it again!" The blonde scientist ran over to her, dropping whatever he was working on in the process and lifting the green goggles that covered his eyes onto his forehead.

"Pan! What happened? Who did what?" he asked, scrambling for answers. His gaze eventually rested on the paper in her hand.

"He's bored, Duncan, he built another one! Ridge is declaring another Survival Games!"


	2. Chapter 1: Pawns in his Game

There can only be one winner: Chapter 1: Pawns in his game

Duncan took a few steps back, only to collapse on an outcropping of stone, his eyes like saucers. He rested his elbows on his knees and took his head in both hands, memories whispering around him and nipping at his ears, reviving themselves within his mind. The last games were brutal. Teamed with Hannah, he watched his friends kill each other, for no prize. Everyone just wanted to live. Slowly, everyone lost their humanity, slaughtering each other just for scraps of food. He'd seen people punched to death, decapitated, hung and in one case even thrown off a roof. The next day, they'd wake up in their beds with nothing to show for it but nightmares, scars and a nagging at the back of your skull that reminded you how savage you became. It was Ridgedog's sick obsession.

Peaceful Pandora had never been exposed to the Games. Duncan just prayed that she'd kept a low enough profile and Ridge wouldn't know about her yet. Maybe, she'd be spared these Games. She could sleep without nightmares for just a little longer. He could keep her hidden, then she'd never have to see the horrors that occurred within the infamous glass dome, she'd be safe. The look in her eyes told him no such thing would happen. As if reading his thoughts, she narrowed her eyes into slits and said with a dark undertone to her voice,

"If your going in that arena, I'm going in with you."

Duncan looked up at her, her long ebony hair swept past her shoulders and her dark grey eyes shone out at him like little stars on a clouded night, her prized musket swung over her shoulder, she was everything to him. His best friend. He couldn't let her take on that burden for him. Especially as he knew the final rule of the Survival Games – there can only be one winner. If it came down to him and her, what would they do? He couldn't kill her just as Martyn had effortlessly killed Toby at the end of the last games to be crowned victor. He opened his mouth, but another voice spoke words he didn't say.

"What an excellent idea, my lady!" exclaimed the voice from between nimble Pandora and Duncan. Suddenly, a wild Ridgedog appeared out of nowhere, arms outstretched in a gesture of greeting. His smug smile was plastered onto his face, the gold thread on his long, midnight jacket shimmering in the light of the Nitor flames. Pandora loaded and raised her musket quicker than the eye could register it happening. Any instinct of protection turned to self-preservation as Duncan backed away from the godlike Ridgedog. The monster raised his hands in an act of surrender,

"Now, now, little lady, your coming with me if you like it or not. Shooting me is only going to make me mad, now isn't it?" his voice was like honey, soothing but made by bees. Pandora wondered if shooting him point-blanc in the head would kill him or simply maim him enough that he could never smile again.

"Thinking again?" he asked sarcastically, tilting his head sideways to meet her gaze.

"I have a right to think." she responded, her mind still wandering to places where there was less of his face intact.

"Just about as much right," he whispered menacingly, drawing slowly closer to her, "as pigs have to fly." With a speed like a bullet, he forced the barrel of Pan's musket upwards, sending it flying into her face. It hit her nose with a crack, sending her reeling into the wall, her prized gun clattering to the floor. Duncan went to help but Ridge stood in front of him.

"You have a choice, Lalna." he whispered, so quietly only he could hear, "You can come with me willingly..." he said before turning to Pan who had collapsed against the wall, clutching her nose, "Or we'll see how much of your girlfriend's face is left by the time I'm done" He run the back of his hand down Pan's cheek and she flinched away from it as if it was made of ice. Pan muttered something which sounded a lot like, "he's not my boyfriend" but no one seemed to hear.

Duncan stood, completely paralysed, listening to the rapidly increasing sound of his own heartbeat. This was no choice, this was a clean-cut, pre-made decision set out on a silver dish to look like he was in control.

"Then I go with you." he murmured, forcing his feet to take a step closer to the monster as if offering himself up for execution, which in essence he was, "So long as Pandora remains here." Ridgedog thought about this for a moment, calculations mixed with insanity swimming like tadpoles behind his hazel eyes. He hummed quietly, ever thinking of that world down the rabbit hole, and what tragedy he could create.

"Denied." he replied. In a flash of gold, all three of them disappeared, leaving behind the abandoned cavern lit by Nitor flames and a blooded musket alone on the floor. The first two members of the Survival Games were gone.

–

"What time did Duncan say he was getting here for?" shouted the spaceman as he flew up to the roof of his marble factory. There stood his shorter, ginger companion, with arms full of red wool as he disassembled the massive statute that had stood atop the Jaffa Factory.

"Dawn," Honeydew replied, dumping the wool blocks down the rubbish chute, "but then he mentioned something about a project and Pan, so I'm not holding my breath."

Lewis looked up at the sky, his dark blue eyes glowing softly, noting that it was, at best, midday. His red jacket billowed out behind him and he took a moment to relish the beautiful Minecraftian day. It was something he'd learned to appreciate since the war.

"So, if we're on our own..." Xephos turned to continue his conversation with the dwarf, only to find he had mysteriously disappeared, leaving a pile of red wool and a diamond pickaxe in his place. He looked around in a full circle, drawing his trusty diamond sword from the sheath on his back. He'd long since learned that it was a good idea to keep on your toes.

"Honeydew!" he yelled, looking off the edge of the roof.

"You know..." he heard someone say from directly behind him. He went to turn and look at the invader but he felt himself falling off the edge. He let out a surprised yell and before he could even activate his flying ring, he felt a par of arms catch him mid-fall.

"You really shouldn't stand on the edge of tall buildings unless you expect to fall."

Xephos looked up at the menacing grin and the murky eyes of Ridgedog. Fear swept through him but he would not give him the satisfaction of seeing it.

"Well, spaceman, you and I are going to play a game..."

–

"Zoey?" Rythian called, his voice echoing through the decrepit halls of Blackrock castle. His footsteps clicked on the marble floors as he scanned every inch of the fortress. The magic room was empty, the kitchen lie abandoned, even the Mooshrooms were un-fed, mooing out into silence. Rythian tried to ignore the nagging sense of panic that was rising within him. _What if she left again? What if Sjin or Lalna took her? And where the hell is Teep? _Reluctantly, the master of magic descended the ladder down into the mines, then to the Mushroom throne room, then down into B.A.R.R.Y which lie in near ruins. He followed down the stark white corridors, cringing at the loud alarms and the humm of unreliable equipment. He scowled at everything, trying to keep his mind purely focused on the task at hand. After a moment of fighting with awkward button controls, he entered the room of screens. Bright lights glared down, followed by each monitor. If he'd been looking, he would have noticed something strange about four of the monitors, but his main focus was on Zoey and Tee. He skimmed through their monitors until he reached Zoey's location.

_Location: Down the Rabbit hole._

"Hello again, Enderborn." greeted the man in the black and gold coat- the mad hatter himself. Fearless Rythian spun around, shooting fire out of his fingertips. It achieved little more than singe his coattails as he dodged and swerved around the mage's enraged flurry of attacks.

"You know, this does get rather tiresome, do you greet all your guests like this? No wonder everybody's trying to blow you up!"

The mage halted his attacks briefly, only to respond.

"No, just you."

Rigedog let out an exasperated sigh and dodged a massive icicle that had been launched at him.

"Look, do you want to know where Zoey is or not?"

This stopped Rythian all together. He narrowed his lilac eyes and his face, even partly concealed by his mask, seethed fury.

"Let her go, fiend." he declared, his hands balling into fists, ready to unleash his true fury.

Godlike Ridge just shook his head, clicked his fingers and he was gone.

"I could never abide that man..." he declared to the empty room, before heading off to find his next victims.

–

"Martyn?" shouted the hooded boy as he entered the wooden cavern that was the entrance to their hidden bunker. The halls were warm and you could feel the power emanating from the boy within. That kind of warmth and power you could only ever feel within the embrace of the forest.

"Martyn, have you heard? Minty says people are going missing!" he said, throwing off his shoes as he descended the wooden steps to see his golden haired friend sitting cross-legged by the fire. The boys emerald eyes seemed to have the life of nature stirring beneath the irises. He had often expressed his dislike for the cold.

"Missing? People go off on random adventures all the time. Toby! Who's gone?" he exclaimed, his emerald eyes following his brown haired companion sitting opposite him, hugging the warm bricks around the fire.

"That's the thing. Pandora, Duncan, Simon and Lewis all going off on some adventure isn't unusual but the word is Blackrock is abandoned and Hannah and Nilsey disappeared on the way to visit Minty. I'm telling you, this is scarily familiar..."

His friend trailed off to look into the embers of the fire, the sadness echoing in his eyes.

"It's happening again, isn't it..." Martyn muttered, trying not to meet the eyes of his companion, knowing full well what he became when he entered that arena. A bloodthirsty, ambitious, power-hungry maniac with an unhealthy lust for victory. That wasn't him – or so he told himself – he couldn't hide that part of him any more. He was the Champion after all.

"Martyn, promise me, If it comes down to it..." Toby begun, looking over to his best friend. His eyes screamed for mercy in the path of a savage.

"OHH! Plans! I do love them! Please, continue!" shouted a voice from directly in front of them. The figure sat cross-legged in the air, blocking the firelight, his face hidden by shadow. Martyn leapt to his feet and took a few steps back from the shadow. Toby was not as athletically inclined and merely fell onto his back in shock.

"Tell me champion, what evil schemes do you have in your mind? Will there be another betrayal? Oh, do tell!"

Martyn scowled at the monster, fury emanating from him. Frightful Toby looked over to him, as if expecting him to answer.

"Ah, a surprise, is it? Good- they make for great entertainment! May the odds be ever in your favour!"

With this, all of them disappeared in a puff of gold smoke.

–

"Minty?" shouted the grey skinned man in the blue spacesuit, "Minty, your boyfriend's here to see you!" He got a solid thump on the back of the head from his bearded companion in the matching orange spacesuit, "What?" the first protested, rubbing the back of his head.

"You don't need to shout about it!" he protested, opening the door into the Captive Creeper and walking in with a ridiculous grin on his face. He had missed Minty. It seemed like they'd been working over at the dirt factory for months without any kind of break.

"I'm afraid Minty isn't here at the moment, please leave a message after the beep..." came a voice out of nowhere. It was one he recognised, however, the harbinger of savagery. Then came a screech, one he recognised belonging to his grey-skinned companion, which he normally heard when there was a creeper or something of equal malice. He turned around to see a familiar face, with a crop of brown hair floating just outside the door.

"A wild Ridgedog appeared!" exclaimed Sips, seemingly glad he had arrived to sate his boredom. Proud Sjin marched forward, barging his companion out of his path.

"We had a deal!" he shouted, as outraged as a lion who'd had his meat taken.

"That deal has..." he paused for a moment, stroking his chin, "Expired."

Sjin snarled at him like a wolf, outraged,

"Leave Minty out of the Games Ridge, or I swear to Notch I'll..."

"Do what?" Ridge interrupted, "A mortal can only dream of slaying Gods."

Sips looked back and forwards between the feuding duo. He'd clearly not been part of said deal as confusion was written into his face. Ridge floated only a few feet off the ground, his arms folded smugly across his chest, the gold hints in his coat sparkling in the bright afternoon sun. He did look frighteningly like a god.

"If you are a god." Sjin replied, "Then you are the god of Evil."

Ridge seemed to like this idea as a glint appeared in his eye.

"That I am, Sjin, you have learned well. Flattery pays, you see. So this is what I'll do. Your friend here, your precious Minty and yourself shall be placed in a different holding room. There, I will give you one hour to plan before I explain some of the...differences this game shall have to the norm. This is the deal I offer you, spacemen, will you play my game?"

Sjin looked at Sips who seemed to have already agreed inside. Planning was key. They could form a massive, merciless band and take on everyone. In the end, they would just have to see who survived. It was perfect.

"Agreed." Sjin muttered, clearly not happy that he had to make this choice at all.

"Perfect!" Ridge exclaimed, transporting Sips, Sjin and Minty to their room. Ridge was, usually, a man of his word. You just had to get on his good side. "Don't you just love it when a trap comes together?" he muttered, laughing manically into the empty air. The pawns were all in place, now it was time to toss a coin and see who took the upper hand.


	3. Chapter 2: Advantages

There can only be one winner: CH2 Advantages

"I'm telling you, Sjin, we just got played!" Sips shouted out to the room. It was made of obsidian with a glass roof, only to allow in light, and the whole room was likely soundproof. No one could hear you scream in here. "What do you think the others are going to be doing while we're planning in here for an hour? Planning themselves! We just got played for fools!" Sjin was sitting with his back against the wall with Minty, holding onto each others hand. Sjin was glad to see Ridge hadn't hurt Minty, her blonde hair still in pretty little plaits either side of her face. Sjin didn't want to admit it, but Sips had a point. This wasn't an advantage, they were just missing out on hearing the other group's plans.

"You are quite right!" said Ridgedog, walking out of the puff of smoke he had created when he appeared, "Right now the others are plotting and scheming. You should hear some of the strategies they've come up with!"

The other three looked at him, their faces stricken with horror. They'd been idiots and now they were worse off than everyone else.

"But, I promised you an advantage, didn't I? Your outspoken words will not go uncredited, Sjin. Sit down and I shall share a piece of information no one else will know until it's too late!" he said before chuckling menacingly. Sips heeded Ridge's words and sat down on the cold obsidian floor. All of them looked up at Ridge, admiration in their eyes.

"All of the others plot a scheme in little groups. The dwarf and the spaceman, the Endermage and the mushroom queen with their dinosaur, even the mad scientist and his peace-maker companion have fallen into my little trap. You see, they all presume the pairs will be the same as normal so they have all made plans accordingly. What they don't know is that I have pre-randomized the pairs!" Ridge folded his arms and laughed. His eyes gleamed with malice. Sjin looked to Minty who was probably having the same thoughts as him. There were so many things that could go wrong. Sjin could be partnered with Rythian, who was naturally more mystically gifted, and Sjin would be dead in seconds. They needed a lot of luck for this to work.

"So, can you tell us the pairs?" Minty asked, looking up at Ridge with her big blue eyes.

"Ah, that I can, my dear! This is the first part of your advantage!" with this, he clicked his fingers and a notebook appeared out of nowhere and he consulted the pages within. "Minty, my dear, you are partnered with the poolboy, Nilesy. Sips, you are with the dwarf, Honeydew. And Sjin, my good friend." he paused for a moment, his finger caressing the word within the book. Sjin held his breath and closed his eyes,

"You have the mushroom queen, Zoey."

After saying these fated words, he disappeared into the air to plan out the final stages. In his place was a crumpled piece of yellow paper – the second and last advantage.

–

Duncan watched them appear into the obsidian room in groups of two or three. Himself and Pandora, who's nose had been miraculously fixed, sat with their backs against the wall, watching them pop up. Xephos and Honeydew appeared first, looking at each other with pained eyes. They knew what was happening. No words were spoken and they joined the other two to await the others. Next came Rythian, Zoey and Teep. Rythian nodded respectfully at Pan before glaring at Lalna with fire in his eyes. Before the situation got out of hand, however, Zoey pulled Rythian to the far corner of the room and sat down. He rested his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands in front of his face. His lilac eyes closed as if he'd gone into hibernation. Pan knew the truth however, he was bracing himself for what was ahead.

Hannah came in with Nilsey. These two spilt off, Nilsey going to sit with Zoey who was attempting to explain to Teep what was going on. Hannah went straight to Lewis. They held onto each others hand and Hannah rested her head on his shoulder. They'd both been here too many times before. Martyn and Toby came in next and chose their wall to sit at. Toby whispered something to the Sapling King and he nodded before giving each other a brief hug. The room was mainly silent. They wouldn't plan now, that came a bit later, this was the time to grab the key and unlock the savage they'd each kept in cages. Now was the time to forget their humanity.

In the later half of the hour, groups began to plan. In their little groups, schemes were made. Tactics were analysed.

_"Pandora will kill us all if she gets a ranged weapon..."_

_ "Don't go near Xephos if he has a sword..."_

_ "If magic is allowed, we need to take out Rythian quickly..."_

_ "Remember to avoid the forests!"_

Ridge watched in his invisible state, intrigued and fascinated. This time was nearly as interesting as the games themselves. They planned the deaths of their former allies, friends. Some even had the joy of deciding the deaths of their enemies and placing bets on who would take the crown. Of course, these plans had to be destroyed, either in the ring or beforehand. When an event was planned it was simple, cold, easy, boring. It was much better when they ran on impulse, the logical thoughts in their brains cut off and fighting on the simple lust for survival. That time was when lovers turned on one another, alliances were destroyed, enemies were made and revenge clouded all rational thought. He looked over to the mushroom queen, Zoeya. He hoped Sjin had not wasted the opportunity he had been presented with. His hour was up and with a click, the smiling trio appeared in the room.

This was his time to shine. Ridge flew over to the wall and pulled a lever which shifted the blocks on the wall he stood before. A giant monitor buzzed to life and Ridge stopped his invisibility.

"Ladies, gentlemen and dinosaur!" he announced, "Welcome to the Survival Games!" Ridge was not deterred by the silence and the icy stares he received.

"The rules are pretty much as usual. Fight for survival or die for what you thought mattered. This time, however, I've introduced new rules." with this a list appeared on screen and it read something like this:

Craft or build whatever you want!

Magic and science IS permitted within the arena – use what you have

Alliances are allowed, but remember, there can only be one.

You may know some of the structures within the arena as HOME but not everything is as it seems and NOWHERE IS SAFE.

There is a UNIQUE WEAPON for every participant.

When someone dies, a cannon will sound and at dusk their face will be projected onto the glass dome, along with what or WHO killed them.

FIGHT TO WIN – THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE WINNER.

This set off murmurers. Plans were updated briefly and Ridge waited patiently, like a teacher waiting for a class to be quiet before setting the homework.

"And one more thing." he declared, bringing silence behind his words, "The partners have been randomized."

Duncan looked at Pandora, who had never set foot inside an arena like this before, who seemed calm and collected like she could predict everything that would happen inside. She thought it would be the same as killing a mob, he knew the feeling, but killing a player was so much more. She'd have to deal with survival with someone new. Hopefully, she'd be matched with Rythian or Zoey, someone she trusted. Better yet, she'd be paired with Xephos or Honeydew, people he trusted would take care of her when he couldn't. Ridge hated them both, what were the chances they'd be paired together? He wouldn't allow it.

"First pair!" he announced, " Nilesy and Minty."

The second the pair had made eye contact, they dissipated from the shoes upwards. Sjin's eyes were wide as he watched Minty go, praying she'd still be alive when the plan fell into place.

"Second, Sips and Honeydew!"

Sips smiled and Honeydew seemed happy as he let out a sigh. Sips felt the yellow paper burning in his pocket and Sjin smiled and nodded as he faded away.

"Third, Hannah and Teep!"

Lewis gave Hannah's had one last squeeze as she faded away, not sure what to expect from the marksman dinosaur. On the other side Rythian leaned over to Tee just as he was fading and whispered,

"Protect Zoey, at all costs."

The dinosaur seemed to acknowledge this before he fully disappeared.

"Fourth, Duncan and Toby!"

Across the room, Duncan and Martyn exchanged glances and they understood. _Protect him, he wont survive alone_. Duncan nodded and then gifted Toby his best reassuring smile, whispering to Pan,

"Find me," just before he was gone.

"Fifth!" Ridge declared, brimming with excitement about the reaction the next pairing would bring,

"Zoey and Sjin!"

It was plain to see that Sjin was barely containing an evil laugh but had settled with a menacing smirk instead. Rythian shared a wide-eyed glance with Zoey and Ridge made sure they disappeared quickly before they had a chance to say any last words to one another, a final revenge for the singed coattails. Pandora and Rythian shared a look. If they couldn't save her, they would get revenge.

"Sixth, Xephos and Rythian! So that leaves us with the final pair, Martyn and Pandora!"

They all shared looks before Pan felt her stomach flip as she was teleported away. She found herself in a glass tube beside Martyn. She couldn't see Duncan, which worried her. The room appeared to be a square, filtering into a 4 block wide gap filled with chests, and presumably another identical room on the other side. All the pairs had been projected on the insides of the tubes, so everyone knew who the original pairs were. Not that it would matter, in the mad scramble everyone would break off anyway. Martyn looked at Pan as if he wanted to tell her everything she could ever need to know, but the big number 3 had appeared on the inside of the tube, so all he said was,

"Run."

2...

Pandora spotted a hint of a white lab-coat on the other side of the chests.

1...

She readied herself and...

Go...

She launched herself forward, but everything instantly went black and she felt her stomach flip again, another teleport. She felt herself falling downwards into the black abyss before she landed with a thump on her back. She felt the cool breeze wash over her and she noticed they were lying on some kind of runway. The only other creature there was Martyn and the sound of distant owls hooting. Over some kind of loudspeaker came Ridge's voice.

"Surprise!"


	4. Chapter 3: Nothing Goes As Planned

CH3: Nothing goes as planned

Magic was finally allowed in the games.

Rythian let out a contented sigh as he was teleported into the glass tube, the partners shown all around him. Xephos was to his left, but he was likely to run off with Honeydew, whom he could also see. On the opposite side of the room, he spotted Zoey and relief swept through him like a cool breeze on a hot day. She was officially partnered with Sjin, but with this scenario, it didn't really matter. What was Ridge playing at then? Was there any point in what he'd just done? No, he did everything for a reason. There was something more to this.

Suddenly, a big number 3 appeared on the tube and he prepared himself. Magic would be his tool. He had no need of weapons.

2...

He looked over to Zoey who nodded. She was not afraid.

1...

He took a deep breath, braced himself and waited for the bell.

GO!

And everything went black.

Rythian knew better than anyone what being teleported felt like. When he opened his eyes, he was lying on a stone floor. He heard another person groan and stumble to his feet. Rythian managed to stand without stumbling too much and steadied himself on a wooden wall.

"Surprise!" shouted Ridge's voice over the loudspeaker, "I'm very sorry, but your plans to run off in your pairs were so transparent, I had to do something!" his laughter echoed around the arena, "Now, choose. Allies, or enemies?" There was a definite click as he stopped speaking.

Xephos locked gaze with him a second, his blue eyes shifting as if the iris' were made of water. Obviously, he was unarmed and there was a sheath on his back where a diamond sword should have been. If he was planning something, his eyes didn't show it, but instead displayed a kind of underlying intelligence. As if he knew more than Rythian could ever know or would ever want too. There was a few moments of unnerving silence before he extended his hand.

"Allies?" he asked. Rythian noted that his hand was trembling slightly. He had no problem with Xephos at all, he had heard he was a good man, and that was a rare thing these days. Rythian took his hand and shook it,

"Allies," he declared. Xephos smiled and looked around the room,

"Where the hell are we?" he asked. They appeared to be on the top floor of whatever building they were in. There was a bed at one end and the wall on Rythian's right opened onto an impressive balcony that stretched the length of the whole house. Behind him was a staircase leading down to the rest of the building. Rythian couldn't push the idea that he'd been here before.

He walked out onto the balcony which overlooked pens of animals, including one massive paddock full of various horses, including one Nightmare and a black horse with gold armour hiding in the shade behind the stables, Zoey and Shadowmere.

"This is Pan's old Farmhouse." he declared.

"Pandora? As in, Duncan's apprentice?" asked Xephos, joining him on the balcony, "She really likes horses, hu."

Rythian cracked a smile and wandered back into the room. Slowly, he headed downstairs, noting that Ridge had removed her condenser. Of course, he couldn't possibly make this easy, could he?

"So if you've been here before, where did she keep her supplies?" his companion asked, following him down the stairs and examining the two armchairs sat beside the raging fire.

"Under the stairs." he replied, gesturing to the room tucked into the corner. A thought crossed his mind, "If we each have unique weapons, what are the chances Pan's musket is in here somewhere?" he asked. Xephos' eyes lit up and he wandered into the supplies room. Together, they scavenged some food, torches and some mushrooms, which made Rythian painfully aware of who he was missing.

**BOOM**

The cannon sounded, and even the birds were silent for the first casualty of the games.

"How long until dusk? " Xephos asked, his eyes betraying fear.

"Too long." Rythian replied, looking up at the sky through the slots on the front door only to become infuriated by how slowly time seemed to be passing.

"If that was Hannah, I swear to Notch..." he mumbled, obviously thinking that Rythian couldn't hear him. For some reason, he felt the need to console the spaceman.

"Lomadia's tough, she'll be all right. She's probably just as worried about you. I'm not known to be the friendliest person, after all."

Xephos looked at him with a new found layer of respect,

"If it means anything, I don't think that was Zoey either. I get the impression that if you peel away the crazy, your left with quite a woman." he paused as if savouring his own words, "But then, in these games, being a bit nuts probably doesn't hurt either!"

They thoroughly searched the house, before descending a ladder found in the storage room. Down this there was what appeared to be a firing range. There were three targets set at varying distances with a chest which might have once contained weapons.

"I wonder if Duncan knows about this..."Xephos wondered, admiring the state of the range and the number of bullet holes that had hit bullseye. He opened up the chest and, with a smile, produced a worn down musket and a pouch full of ammo. On the side, in gold text, were the words: _Ol` Faithful_. Rythian saw this and took a step back, still slightly wary.

"Do you want it?" Xephos asked, demonstrating possibly misguided trust, but it was enough to prevent Rythian from fleeing.

"I don't need it, thanks. Just don't shoot me just yet!"

BOOM.

The second death. All colour drained from the two men's faces and they continued to scout around, all humour lost between them.

"Hey! This looks like a passage!" shouted Xephos, shining his trusty torch into the 2 by 1 path. Rythian appeared and scouted slightly down the tunnel.

"We may as well see where it goes. It looks like it goes on quite a long way."

"You know, me and the dark have never really.." Xephos began, before Rythian rolled his eyes and chucked all of his spare torches at him.

"Use as many as you please." he commented with a knowing smirk. The spaceman echoed his grin as he followed him down the passage, placing torches every 3 or 5 blocks depending on how brave he felt.

BOOM

The cavern shook and they moved on a little quicker than before.

The passage seemed to drag on forever before they emerged in the light of the setting sun.

"Just in time." Rythian noted, looking around. His face lit up with obvious delight as he saw his home standing proudly before him. He was about to run over to it, when he noticed Xephos had frozen, looking up at the glass dome.

"They'll be showing the fallen." he muttered, "I wont move until I know she's safe."

A two note whistle sounded through out the arena and there was a moment where time itself stood still.

"For those of you remaining, these are the fallen of the first day." Ridge's voice declared, an unfriendly reminder that he was always watching.

The first face that appeared on the dome was not much of a surprise. The one with the thick-rimmed glasses and green tie – Nilesy, with a smaller picture of Sjin in the bottom right.

"How am I not surprised." Rythian muttered, glaring at the picture of Sjin with such malice it could cut the air in half. The second face that appeared on the dome was actually a surprise. A smiling man with a thick ginger beard. Honeydew had fallen. The picture that accompanied his was Sips, who was smirking.

"No..." Xephos muttered, his eyes screaming for blood. Rythian saw an anger in him he'd never once expected. It reminded him of what the Games did to people. It only took a glance at the third picture for Rythian to taste the blood in the air.

The little picture in the corner was his own companion, Teep, which was a surprise to him. Perhaps he'd taken his oath to protect Zoey a little more seriously than he should have done. In the large picture, was a woman with flowing blonde hair, smiling happily. She was holding hands with someone who had been cut out of the image. Whomever it was, they clearly made her happy. In the trees behind her, an owl sat contentedly, eyeing up her own knitted owl hat.

It was Hannah.

Lewis screamed and Rythian took the opportunity to run.


	5. Chapter 4: House of Wolves

CH4: House of Wolves P1

_Note: Apologies for the delay! It's exam season and I am in a world of trouble, so these will be far and few between for a few weeks! I've decided to do this chapter in parts as they are about the same thing, but tension gap is needed! Bonus points to whomever knows what artist the song in the title is by. _

The forest loomed around Sips, the spindly branches blocking the sunlight from the ground. The area smelled of damp earth and rotting foliage, a thin layer of mist covering the insects that crawled in the undergrowth, the type of area you didn't want to be in at night. Luckily, the sun had barely struck the midday point. He brushed the yellowish mud from his white spacesuit and sighed, pulling the crumpled piece of yellow paper from his pocket and unfolded it. He was hopelessly lost after he'd set off from whatever dark castle he'd started in. Perhaps Sjin had been right giving him the map. He'd figured Sips would need it more than he would.

Sips refused to admit Sjin been right and consulted the map. In the bottom right was the little cross where he had begun labelled `Blackrock`. He assumed that was the basalt castle in which he had begun. Before the games, Sjin, Minty and himself had agreed to meet in the middle at the top, kindly labelled `Captive Creeper`, assuming it was the bar and not in fact a Creeper who was captive. It was surrounded by little tree symbols which he assumed meant that it was within a forest. In the top left of the map was with hugging the shoreline on the left edge. Owl island was in the very bottom corner, with a small island simply labelled `CC` cocooned by the mainland. Sips wasn't happy with how close the Captive Creeper was to Duncan's castle, with the labels pretty much beside each other at the top, and InTheLittleCorp sitting safely in the middle of the forest where Martyn would be strongest. This wasn't exactly a safe place to meet but they could take everyone on once they were together. He ignored the two icons on the right side, Farmhouse (whatever that was) and Nilesy's grotto, deeming them far enough away to been classed as `currently not my problem`.

He scrambled through the forest for what seemed like a small age, ignoring the cannon when it fired. The darkness began to set in and he could feel the power of the forest turning negative, pressing in on him, trying to crush his morale. He could hear little more than the rapid thump of his own heartbeat and the insects pushing aside leaves to scurry towards him. He placed one foot in front of another, nearly sprinting at the sight of a torch at the edge of the forest. Running would create too much noise and give away his position.

Steadily, Sips emerged into the light of the Captive Creeper. He was relieved to see Minty and Sjin, the latter of which was holding a plasma cannon towards the third member, the red-headed Zoey. That he really hadn't expected to see.  
"Sjin!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms out wide and smiling, "Fancy seeing you here!" Sjin smiled and waved for him to come over to where they were standing in a huddle,  
"Come on! The fallen are about to be projected!" The two note whistle pierced the air and Sips took his rightful place next to his partner. He could see Zoey shaking  
"For those of you remaining, the fallen of the first day."

The first to appear was that of Nilsey, with Sjin's smaller image in the corner.  
"And no-one is surprised." mumbled Minty, almost glaring at Sjin. She briefly explained how she'd dragged him all the way out here, only for Sjin to shoot him immediately. She looked less than pleased about this fact. Her dainty eyebrows creased inwards and Sjin hid his indifference by looking back up at the sky. The next picture was of Honeydew, with Sip's smaller picture.  
"Wow, Sips, how did you do it?" asked Sjin, his eyes wide.  
"The castle we were in was quite wrecked and we were quite high up. All it took was one push." he muttered, cackling slightly at the end. Minty seemed somewhat horrified by this. The final picture, clearly taken before the games like all the others, was of Hannah. From somewhere far away, they heard Lewis shout.  
"Well," muttered Sjin, "This just got a lot more interesting."

They all filtered into the Captive Creeper, relying on the light of the torches to keep them safe. Sjin handed Sips a iron sword, which would be pretty ineffective if they encountered Rythian or anything created by Red Matter, but it was infinitely better than nothing. Minty took her rightful place behind the bar and lounged over the counter. She revealed she had obtained a full stack of TNT and a pair of Chainmail boots along with the normal rag-tag pieces of food and useless iron ingots. Sjin had obtained the laser, which was still pressed firmly into Zoey's back, along with an uncharged Nano chestplate which was akin to gold armour in this state. Sips showed he had obtained a well-loved bow and arrow and what appeared to be a blowgun with a stack of darts. The redhead's eyes lit up, knowing full well that weapon was rightfully hers.  
"So, what's the plan?" asked Minty, meeting the eyes of the two men in her bar, "Wait until morning then see what we can do?" The bearded man seemed to agree with this, but the grey skinned Sips had other ideas,  
"We have the map, I say we head down to , home field advantage and all that jazz."  
"I agree," Sjin replied. There was a moment when all four of the pairs of eyes met each other. Sips dragged his iron sword down the counter creating a loud screech.  
"We'd move quicker if it's daytime." Minty responded. The torches flickered and the shadows swayed. The shadows under each persons eyes collected into an underline. Sips ran his tongue over his bottom lip.  
"We'd move quicker is there was less of us." Sjin replied. Minty looked away. Her blue eyes fogged over. Sips smiled as if he'd shared thoughts. Zoey took one step back. A step too loud.  
"How many less?" Sips asked. Sjin turned the gun in his hand. His eyes turned to the sky in thought.  
"Oh, just the one." he responded. A crow screamed in the distance. The darkness invaded the corners of the room. Somewhere in the distance a zombie moaned. There was a click, too loud for the silence. Sjin had pulled off the safety on the laser. Sips met Minty's horrified eyes.  
"Just do it." she mumbled. Her soft eyes closed. Sips and Sjin met eyes and nodded.

**BOOM**


	6. Chapter 4 House of Wolves P2

CH4 P2

Rythian used the last of his energy to haul himself up to the highest branch of a tree. He'd managed to get to Blackrock before Xephos had used his blood for artwork and had retrieved what he assumed to be the weapon designed to be his, a red matter katar. It glowed dimly in the night and gave off a faint hum that spoke of pure power. He collapsed onto the highest branch, too tired to move. He'd been glad Zoey hadn't been on the fatalities list, there was still hope she was out there somewhere. Maybe she'd got away from Sjin. Rythian shook his head and reminded himself firmly that she was a strong girl who could look after herself.

"_So was Hannah..." _the voice inside his mind muttered but he ignored it.

From his high vantage point, Rythian could see for miles. He was right on the edge of a forest that sprawled across the landscape for what looked like an eternity. There were lights off in the distance but his eyes couldn't quite focus them into a picture. Behind him was Blackrock in all its crumbled glory. He'd lost track of Xephos, perhaps he'd ventured into the forest, which was incredibly unwise. If Martyn had made his way inside, the spaceman had signed his own death certificate in blood.

**BOOM**

The explosion from the cannon was so loud Rythian nearly fell from his branch, a fall which would've certainly been fatal. It shook his very being. The fear found its way back into his heart like an infection of worry. There were other people in the arena, he reminded himself, lots of other people that could be. It was a bad train of thought to have but the only one that gave him any comfort. Maybe someone had been foolish enough to stand in Xephos' way and were now hanging from a noose strung around some high branch somewhere. Rythian was unsure of the custom when someone died in the night. Sometimes they were displayed and sometimes they weren't. It all hung on weather Ridge felt in necessary or not.

"It appears someone just missed the list! Shame! I'll just have to show you anyway. It is a slight revenge, I suppose." came Ridge's booming voice. Rythian got to his feet, wrapping one of his arms around the trunk of the mighty oak. He didn't need to get any closer to see, but he felt it was required.

He nearly fell right back down again.

"Next time, don't ruin my coat." came the icy voice, ending the announcement with a click. Projected on the dome was someone with blue eyes, deep as oceans. A smile as wide as her face enlightening her features. He could even see his own fingertips where he had been cut from the picture. He could remember with perfect clarity when this photo was taken, before the games, back at Blackrock. They'd spent the whole day on the hunt for a specific type of seed she'd needed for her farm but had just ended up on a beach messing around in the sand. They'd even stayed out to watch the sunset and he'd nearly kissed her. He'd come so close to telling her how he felt. Her red hair glowed vibrantly in the sunlight and framed her face so beautifully.

Zoey.

In the bottom right sat a smug face, Sjin. The rage that burned within him exploded in the form of a bloodthirsty war cry that sent the birds flying up from the trees in a black plume, letting out terrified screeches and squawks. From his vantage point, he could see the entire arena and surely all of them could hear him. Using this, he yelled,

"SJIN! I know you can hear me, so know this! I will use your blood for warpaint by the time this is done, you hear me? You will SUFFER!" with this, he exhausted his remaining energy supplies and he felt his back glide down the tree trunk until he was safely upon his branch. Zoey was dead. The fact hit him as if he'd been shot. He even checked to see if his chest was still intact only to find that it painfully still was. It felt like someone had taken out his heart, stamped all over it, then put back with only bruises to remind him it had happened at all. Then he reminded himself that it was Sjin who did this to him and the world turned red. All he could think of were two people: Sjin and Minty. He could smell their blood. Standing up, he planned his attack.

Martyn and Pan had just arrived on the mainland when the announcement came of Zoey's death. They scrambled out of their boats with stiff legs and damp clothing and lie on the sand, too tired to move. They'd agreed to a temporary truce. They would get Martyn into the heart of a forest, then they would split up so Pan could go and hunt down Duncan, giving time for Pan to get clear of the forest first, of course.

At the sight of Zoey, Pan froze completely. She could picture Sjin's blooded body as if she could somehow see the future. She knew that he would never get away with this, Rythian would never allow it, he was too proud.

"That's not even survival..."Martyn muttered, "That's just plain bloodthirsty."

They sat dead still, listening to Rythian's declaration of revenge, the words echoing and amplified within the glass dome. Pandora heard the raw pain behind his words but the anger overwhelmed her. His voice sounded less human and more creature. Even Martyn seemed afraid, his blue eyes hollow. Both let out a sigh of relief as the shouting stopped.

"Right," the Sapling King muttered, getting to his feet and brushing away the excess sand as if it represented all of his worries, "I see a forest, let's go!"

Minty flinched when she turned around again. Zoey was still standing but there was a hole in her chest where her heart should have been. As her body fell, it slowly dissolved into pixels, so by the time it hit the floor there was nothing left to land. The barmaid bit her bottom lip and punched Sjin in the arm, retreating to the back of the bar. She rubbed her cheeks, forehead, then her eyes, trying to erase the memory. She felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned to see Sjin, his eyes overflowing with sorrow. He pulled her into his chest and muttered soothing words and apologies into her hair. They listened to Rythian's threats like this, frozen in time, utterly terrified to the bone, though neither would admit it. When the world has returned to silence, Sjin held Minty by both shoulders at arms length and looked into her sapphire eyes and said,

"Do whatever it takes to survive, right Mints?"

She nodded reluctantly back at him and he caressed her cheek, "Get some shut-eye. I'll keep watch with Sips." Minty went along with it not believing that she would sleep for one moment that night. What disturbed her was that she did.

"We're lost." Toby declared, looking back at his blonde companion. They'd headed into the woods after sailing from the small island bar they had started in to the mainland. Since then, the darkness had crept in, turning the friendly oaks into iron bars on a prison cell window. Toby had guessed Martyn would do the same with Pandora, so it would work in their favour if they stuck together for a while. Besides, Lalna had two unspoken promises to keep. Protect Toby and Pan, to the best of his ability.

"We are definitely not lost! I know exactly where we are!" he declared, somewhat sarcastically. He was still on a slight rush after not seeing Pan on the fallen. Toby had been glad his companion had been absent also so thus both were happy when they had marched blindly into the forest. The happy feeling was all they had, however, they had no idea what direction they were travelling.

"All right then, Goggle-boy, where are we?" the hooded boy exclaimed, stopping in his tracks. Lalna pinched the bridge of his nose before throwing his arms out in surrender,

"For the love of Notch, Toby, I don't know!"

"But you just said..." the hooded one retorted before he was instantly interrupted by Duncan again,

"I know what I said! I was being sarcastic!" This seemed to deeply annoy Toby so he descended into a sulky teenage tantrum for the next few minuets. Both flinched at the sound of the cannon. Both stood still, praying for their respective partners. When Zoey appeared, both allowed a hiss of relief. They listened to Rythian's screams, terrified at how close they sounded. When they finally continued onwards, chasing a light Toby had thought he'd seen an hour ago, Lalna was smirking. Eventually, they took a moment to catch their breath and have something to eat. As Toby collapsed resting against a chosen tree that looked sturdy, Duncan admired the night sky. One tree was much taller than all the rest, he noted, and if he strained his eyes he could just see the silhouette of a man with a cape billowing out behind him, tiny purple flakes floating around his skin.

"Well," he muttered, "This just got a lot more interesting."


	7. Chapter 5: The Beast

Chapter 5: The Beast

Pan was still unsure how Martyn had any idea where he was going. He had the natural grace of a forest sprite of legend, his legs never becoming caught on roots and his clothes never snagged by thorns, as if the forest moved aside for him and him alone. Pan was not so fortunate, however, as she stumbled through the forest with the grace of an ogre, clothes ripping and muttered curses streaming from her in a constant flow of frustration.

"We're here."  
Pan tugged her jacket free of a bush of thorns which captured a slice of leather as a souvenir. She managed to stop cursing to examine the area. A small fire sat in the centre of the grove, the smoke from the dying embers creating a thin line which was blocked by the trees canopy. At the far side was a green tent containing two beds with leaves covering the sides that had almost turned it camouflaged. To the left were two wooden cubicles which looked deliberately unimportant. The early morning light slithered through the gaps in the olive leaves, creating a disco light effect which Martyn bathed in. He was home.

"Welcome to IntheLittleCorp, Pan. I wonder if my sword is still where I left it…" he muttered, heading over to the tent and crawling under the bed, pushing away piles of dirt in his path. Pan followed him with a kind of innocent curiosity, a position usually reserved for Toby, watching the boy of the forest with awe in her eyes. He reappeared with a scowl on his face. In his hand was a sword. The blade itself was emerald with a gold hilt which looked like vines were gripping his hand. When Pan really listened, she could hear it singing with power.

Martyn swung the blade in a wide arc, getting a feel for the weight and balance,  
"It's not the same one, but it's a very good attempt at a copy." He muttered, holding the sword up to his face for inspection. He almost went to hand Pan the sword but seemed to change his mind, mistrust flickering in his eyes, and sheathed it.

"The Sapling Blade." He muttered, "I hoped I'd never need to use it in a place like this." His eyes darkened and he sighed, "Shall we see if there's any food around, then we'll part ways. I can see Duncan's castle from here." Pan looked up at the sky line and sure enough, the looming but familiar silhouette of the Castle she now called home had an ominous presence in the line of trees.  
"All right then, it's down here I presume." She replied, heading towards the wooden doors. Sure enough, if she looked through the gaps, she could see the underground complex. The Sapling King nodded and began walking over to join her.

Pandora opened the door, the cold of the underground hitting her like a wall of ice, and took a step forwards. There was a terrifying snap of string breaking and Pan felt a weight against her boot give.  
"Oh, shit!" she yelled, waving off Martyn with her left hand before attempting to dive forwards. There was the sound of pistons activating. The doors burst outwards, one nearly hitting Martyn, as the walls either side of them were pushed inwards. Pan's torso missed the trap, but her arm was not so fortunate. There was a sickening crunch of bone and a scream that surely echoed through the entire arena.

The impact itself was not as painful as when the pistons pulled away. Matyn ran to where she had collapsed on the floor. There was no blood, but her arm just seemed flattened, as if they'd taken all the muscles away and just left skin hanging from bone or in this case, a very shattered bone. The Sapling King scavenged the caverns and eventually came across some bandages and painkillers. Using this, plus some sticks to create a sort of splint, he wrapped her arm tenderly in a sling and gave her the painkillers which she swallowed down with a little water.

"Some use I'll be when I find my gun..." Pan muttered with a horse voice, her eyes red from tears, "That's my aiming arm."

Martn shook his head and attempted a reassuring smile,

"It will be fine. You can stay here! Lalna and Toby will turn up, then he can look after you!"

A half laugh, half sob racked her body and she looked up at the slots in the door,

"Looking after me..." she repeated, "He's always looking after me. Though this time he cannot afford too."

The Sapling King hid the pain from his eyes in a curtain and sat on the stairs beside where she had fallen.

"Are you and him..." he left the question open for any kind of interpretation. Pan shook her head solemnly. She wasn't going to tell him that since she'd moved in, she'd liked something new about him every day, and something else annoyed her. On her third day, she'd loved the way his eyes sparked whenever he was in the process of learning something, like a child surrounded by chocolate. On the same day she'd become infuriated by the way he'd begin something dangerous, then loose interest at the most important stage and hurt himself. On the seventh day, she'd learned to love the little niche in his hair that was left whenever he took his goggles off to sleep. When she really thought about it, she couldn't even remember what she hadn't liked that day.

"No..." she replied, "We're just friends."

Martyn gave a little half smile,

"Yeah, I used to say that about Toby too..." he chuckled, "People stopped believing me pretty quickly."

Pandora and Martyn sat in silence for a moment and she didn't notice she'd fallen asleep until she woke up. The sun was just setting and the Sapling King had fallen asleep beside her, snoring loudly. The painkillers had reduced the pain to a dull throb. She still kicked herself for falling for such a blatantly obvious trap. Ridge had even warned them that nowhere in this arena was safe. She noted Martyn had left out an stone sword for her and she managed to somehow tie the belt around her waist. She needed air, night or day.

She noticed suddenly that the doors had been placed back on their hinges. Similar to when an artist brushes off rubber shavings off a sketch, Ridge couldn't stand to see his masterpiece spoiled, even if it was entirely his fault. The crisp night air created a very different atmosphere to the clearing. She felt exposed and alone in comparison to when the warm day had created opalescent fairy lights that danced along the branches and made her feel at home. She couldn't decide if it was the absence of light or Martyn that had caused this difference.

"That trap caught you, did it?"

The voice shocked Pan. She reached for a pouch of ammo that wasn't there for a gun she didn't have. She looked up and met hazel eyes. She wasn't sure if Ridge carried some sort of light source or if he just had an internal light that made him glow in the dark, like a firefly. Either was possible. Pan didn't respond to his question so he shook his head and turned his back on her, his hands folded neatly behind him.

"Lalna heard you scream." he said, with a voice of ice, "I watched the terror in his face,"

He turned to her shocked expression with a smirk. His eyes concealed inner wickedness with an exterior of decorum.

"So what's the plan Pan? Wait for your knight-in-shining-armour to show up? Because, let's face it..." he was suddenly inches from her face, his breath hitting her cheek, "We all know your role in this story."

She wasn't exactly sure what part of her brain thought her next move was a good idea but she went with it anyway. Using her good hand she pulled the sword from the sheath on her belt. Ridge heard the noise and while Pan was occupied blinking, he moved back. She held the blade flat towards him, her storm cloud eyes hardening,

"I am **not **a Damsel." she retorted. A few raindrops shattered against the blade of the sword. She'd almost expected Ridge to be amused but he clearly wasn't. Shadows collected in the corners of his eyes and his finger pointed up.

"Listen, I know full well who you were up there, but let me tell you something, that doesn't matter at all," the finger turned downwards, "Down here. You are the damsel. If you refuse, I will make you one. You have no dictatorship here." His hands returned to his back and the smirk appeared. Pan's mouth tried to form words but none came, the sword became too heavy to lift and the arm fell to her side.

"It's not like you have any power up there any more either. Reminds me very much of my own story..." he continued.

"There is a difference between being _stuck_ and being _exiled_." she spat the last word, her voice harbouring venom it hadn't required in a long time.

"And there is a difference between being exiled and being stuck." he grinned, the raindrops now hammering down around them but none seemed to graze Ridge, "She's all yours."

Pan spun quicker than her eyes could create images. She was faced with a figure emerging from the forest. The beast wore the remains of a red jacket, wielding a musket that should have been hers, blue light shone from his eyes. Behind the glow she could see a man hammering at the lenses, trapped. The beast growled. Pan turned to confront Ridge to find he had vanished, in his place a small felt pouch. On impulse alone, she ran for the bag, her arm protesting loudly. She heard Xephos run toward her from the forest and her heartbeat at least doubled. She grabbed the bag, foolishly dropping her sword to achieve this, glad to feel the familiar weight of a pouch of musket ammo. She really wanted her gun.

She turned to see Xephos had stopped. He regarded her with the amusement of a puppy toying with its meat before it is eaten. Slowly, she took fearful steps towards the sword lying on the ground,

"Listen, Xephos, I don't know what Ridgedog did to you..." she muttered, her eyes fluttering from the sword then back up, "But I didn't kill Hannah, Teep did." At the mention of Lomadia, the glow stopped. A familiar wisdom and warmth spread across his eyes. They grew wide and frightened,

"Help...Me..." came the voice, choked and fighting for words. Then the glow came back, this time brighter, and he lunged. Pan grabbed the sword, bringing it up so the barrel hit the flat blade and not her. In her crouched state, it knocked her backwards so she was lying on the water logged earth and the blade left her hand again. She had never been one for swordplay.

"Martyn!" she yelled, but she was certain the noise would be drowned out by the Sapling King's own snores. There was a loud gunshot that rang loudly in her ears accompanying the patter of raindrops and Pan noticed Xephos had misfired the gun. She was the only one who had ever used her musket before. No one had many ideas on how to use one. The explosion had left her ears wringing ominously and the painkillers decided now was a good time to wear off. Xephos used this time to reload and Pan found herself in a situation she never thought she'd end up in. She was staring down the barrel of her own gun. She didn't want it to end like this. Her eyes closed, not wanting to see the ball that would kill her. Mud was absorbed into her hair and the raindrops knocked on the entrance to her eyes. Silently, she awaited the click of the trigger.

The explosion sounded again, but it didn't hit her head. She could feel her heart beating. _She wasn't dead._ Pandora forced her eyes open to see Martyn standing over her, he had knocked the gun from Xephos' grasp and it was lying temptingly on the floor. The beast looked surprised for a moment before pixel by pixel a diamond sword appeared in his hand. It met the Sapling Blade with a crash of metal.

"Run, Pan! Find the others!" Martyn ordered. Pan scrambled across the mud and filth, grabbing her gun as she went. Blindly, through the pouring rain and thorns, Pan threw herself at the mercy of the forest muttering over and over again,

"Martyn, I'm so sorry..."

_Note: I don't even know where this chapter came form. This was never went to be here, or written this early...Hmmm.._

_A bit of foreshadowing in here for a future FF hopefully!_

_Also, anyone here catch my Lord of the Flies references? No? Maybe my dad?_

_Anyway, be glad, I ignored 2 possible cliffhanger points here. Be grateful for my mercy!_


	8. Chapter 6: Extra Chess Pieces

CH6: Extra Chess Pieces

Gunshots.

This was all it took to send Lalna sprinting into the forest, Toby lagging behind him. His soul was braced for the cannon but it didn't sound. Gunshots were a definite sign of Pan, it always was. His brain was in disarray. It was his duty to protect Pan. She couldn't go before they'd even seen one another. He silently swore vengeance on whomever killed her, should anything happen.

Branches whipped his face as a flurry of scenery flew past him, Toby scrambling along in his destructive path. Then he stopped. He was faced with a pair of glowing blue orbs that met his through the raindrops that were getting lighter and lighter every second. The orbs narrowed, stared into his green ones, then carried onwards past where Lalna and Toby stood like deer caught in headlights. They shared a look of mutual confusion and the hooded boy shrugged.

Lalna then resumed sprinting, though this time he had little or no idea which direction he was running in now. The branches seemed to direct him, a clear path always emerging for them to follow.

"Lalna! Slow down! I can't run that quickly!" he yelled, checking behind him before slamming into something while he wasn't looking. He let out a little whine and looked to see he had run directly into the scientists' back. Duncan had paused at the edge of a clearing. The rain had stopped but the ground was still like quicksand. Toby looked at what Duncan had stopped to see, the dying rays of the sun illuminating where the Sapling King laid, his sword beside him.

The hooded boy ran to his companion, fear gripping his heart like a vice. Martyn was always allright. He was the champion. He wouldn't leave him alone in this hell, would he? He keeled next to his best friend, taking his hand.

"Martyn?" he whispered, his voice horse and dry, "Creeper buddy?"

The Sapling King's blue eyes stayed glued shut. What Toby would do to see those eyes again. The eyes in which he could see the seasons change and life stir. The eyes he had lost himself in night after night. His breathing, if it was there at all, was shallow. Toby shook him lightly, tears collecting over his eyes. Lalna noticed the Sapling King's clothes had sword slashes and there was a slightly bleeding cuts all over him where a blade a had got him,

"Toby..." he muttered, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"No!" he protested loudly, shaking his hand away, "He's not! He can't be!" He leaned over him, cupping his cheek with his hands, "You're okay. You're always OK. Aren't you?"

**BOOM**

"Martyn! You can't! You can't leave me here!" he yelled, clinging to his tattered green shirt, tears shattering onto him, "Please!" Duncan watched with an unspoken sympathy. He knew what he was feeling. He looked around the compound. A tent that had once stood proud had a large rip down the canvas. The fire pit had been kicked around and destroyed, components of it used as weapons. Where was Pan in all this mess? Had they split before this, or was she around here somewhere?

"Martyn! Look at me!" Toby yelled but his voice was so strangled and pained it came out quietly. Lalna had no idea why his broken body had yet to dissipate. He walked over and peered over Toby's shoulder and met a pair of brilliant blue eyes. Toby clung to the boy's chest and Martyn slowly wrapped his arms around him,

"Damn it Martyn, you scared me so much. I thought you were…were…" the boy whined. Matyn sucked in deep breaths, his gaze just focusing,

"I'm ok, Toby. I'm actually ok. I thought…I thought he would kill me." He muttered, taking in the boy and his companion standing over them both with a smile on his face. Martyn creased his eyes together and focused his eyes on the scientist,

"Is she with you guys?" he muttered, breaking into a coughing fit. Lalna descended into panic again. If the cannon wasn't for Martyn, then who was it for? He couldn't wait for the sun to finally burn out to find out. The Sapling King seemed to understand and his eyes hardened. He raised one hand weakly and pointed the opposite way that the two had emerged from. A gust of wind came and blew the trees apart, creating a path for him to follow. Lalna watched his magic with a quiet awe,

"She went that way." He paused a second, seeming to sense something and hissing, "Run."

"Not far now." Sjin muttered, walking along with Sips and Minty, his hand intertwined with the latter. Minty had entered a thoughtful silence since Zoey had died, avoiding instances where she had to say anything. Her thoughts were so loud she couldn't hear Sjin or Sips when they spoke to her. He held onto her hand if only to preserve who she was. The dying sun created long shadows so that there was more shade than sunlight at this point. If they really squinted, they could see the outline of the Sipsco building. Sjin allowed a smirk to pass over his face. This might just work out after all.

"We need to comb this area for players. We don't want anyone too close." Sips muttered, climbing down from a vantage point on top of a large rock. He looked at Minty, seeing the hollowness in her face and the distance in her eyes, and his heart panged. He knew he had to let go now.

"Walk one tree apart. Comb the area, keep your eyes open." He replied, prying his hand away. He watched as a light in her eye screamed out for help and then died as she assumed her place in the middle row. Sjin couldn't help feeling as if he'd made a mistake somewhere along the line.

From his glass dome, Ridge watched with an amused satisfaction. He glared at the glass chess board that sprawled out in front of him, each piece a representation of each player. He saw Xephos make his move and he released his control. He didn't need that player any more. He saw the line appear, consisting of the three partners, and he scowled. This was too easy. Too easy meant too boring for him. He spun in his chair and pulled a tiny key from his inside pocket, unlocking a small lock box. Inside were extra chess pieces of all kinds and from this he selected three. In the spaces between the players he pushed the pieces in. The noise that met his ears not seconds later was enough to know they had worked.

The three monsters appeared in between Sjin's blinks. The one on the far side seemed to be a monster that was human up to the waist, but had arms and head of a beast. It roared with a frightening ferocity and it swiped with arms powered by muscles twice that of a man's head. Its eyes were aflame and Sips drew his weak iron sword, staring at it in horror. He knew he would likely need something of diamond at least to take this down, what chance did iron have? The beast charged and Sips fled.

The second monster was as twice the height of Minty, whom it towered over. It had six terrible creeper heads and three great legs. It hissed and writhed, as if its own skin pained him. Minty drew a sword of her own, she had found in a tree chest not an hour prior, this one made of dark matter. Sjin looked at her in surprise, she hadn't told anyone she'd found it. Why had she kept it a secret? Didn't she trust them? The creeper monster hissed and spit flame at her, and she dodged and dived until she was out of view, her chainmail clinking like a homing beacon.

Sjin had possibly the worst of the bunch but possibly the simplest. It wasn't double his height, but nearly. The dragon had blue scales that flowed like water. A deceptive ploy, as the fire that spewed from his mouth was very real. Sjin fired laser after laser at the monster but they glazed off the scales. Like his two companions, Sjin realised that the best thing he could do was run. He pelted through the forest, fire licking his heels, the Sipsco building disappearing from view. When he had got thoroughly lost, the dragon just vanished. Ridge had his fun but he couldn't risk the deaths of three of his favourite creatures. He had achieved what he needed to achieve. The trio was lost and the hunt would have to start all over again.

Sips pelted through the forest, unaware the monster had been taken away until he burst onto a forest clearing. Perhaps, if his fear had not blinded him, he might have heard the muttered voices that were very aware of his presence. He felt the sword against his neck and he halted. Whoever was the holder stood behind him and held him firmly in place. He focused his eyes against the darkness and saw a boy in a hoodie with a tear stained face smirking.

"Good night, Sips," whispered the voice, and the green blade that sung tasted blood as the grey-skinned man's head rolled to the floor.

**BOOM**

Lalna stopped dead when the two part whistle sounded. He had entered a part of the forest where the trees were set in clear rows, each tree the exact same distance from each other. He looked up past the trees at the dome where the fallen were projected.

"For those of you still alive, the fallen of the third day." Ridge's voice boomed through the arena and everyone stopped dead. The first to be displayed was that of the dinosaur archer. Duncan let out a gasp of relief. He had been braced for the familiar face of Pandora. Xephos' smaller picture sat in the bottom, a grin on his face. He had the revenge he desired. The second picture was that of the grey-skinned Sips, with the Sapling King sitting smugly in the bottom right. This thought brought up Lalna's sprits. At least Martyn was okay.

The projection disappeared and Lalna continued running. From somewhere in the forest, he was sure he could hear singing. It seemed to come from everywhere but yet nowhere,

"Don't cry, Mercy. There's too much pain to come…" He realised suddenly he knew that voice too well. There was a loud explosion of sound that was the noise of Pan's musket. The second sounded much more synthetic.

**BOOM**

_Kill me after the next chapter, Ok._

_I died writing this, so I hope you died reading it._


	9. Chapter 7: Don't Cry

Chapter 7: Don't Cry.

Pan hadn't kept track of the failing light as it died on the other side of the forest. This side of the woods was so different from the dense thicket of vines and thorns around InTheLittleCorp. Here, there were no shrubs, just a thick layer of pine needles underfoot that killed all life that dared to grow. The trees towered upwards with thin trunks and bark like a hedgehog's back, each one an equal distance apart in neat rows. A thick fog had set in, creeping up from the very earth.

Pan clung to her gun tightly with her good hand, her finger hanging by the trigger. The silence was piercing, as if someone had dampened every sound until it was too quiet to hear. The cold only made it worse, her hands trembling in part from fear. She wondered where Lalna was, if Martyn was still alive, if Xephos got his revenge after all. Then the whistle came and she watched the projections silently, wondering how close she was to the two killers currently.

When the projection left, the darkness truly arrived. The fog made it so she couldn't see what she was standing on or where she was going. Every step she took she arrived at another set of tree crossroads. Pan couldn't stand the silence. She couldn't stand the chill that travelled down her spine as she waited to see anyone, unsure if they would be hostile or friendly. Her rapidly beating heart panicked and resorted to a song. A lullaby she'd sung many times over. A song for a good friend, "Don't…" her voice came out dry, strangled and terrified. Her arm ached. She felt like curling up into a ball and sobbing until Lalna found her in this forest that never seemed to end. She coughed, shook the tears away and tried again, "Don't cry, Mercy. There's too much pain to come."

The rustles of pine needles were her only warning. She spun on her heels, her eyes blurred with tears until she couldn't see. She was faced with a distant figure, little more than a silhouette, consisting of an impressive moustache and an orange square. She, rather unwisely, shot first. The recoil nearly broke her wrist, this was a weapon designed for someone with two hands after all, and the bullet slammed into the tree next to the figure's head with an explosion of sound. There was a half-second of shock. She never missed. She hadn't missed since she first held a gun when she was just a little girl. Her eyes opened wide and she saw a red laser fly towards her from the gloom.

There was nothing she could do.

**BOOM.**

It was her cannon, it had to be, but she wasn't dead. Not yet. The figure fled into the forest, likely grinning. She pressed her hand to her stomach and it came away slick with blood. Was it her cannon? Or had someone happened to die at the same time as her? "It was your cannon, Pan. I just want him to find you. I want to see the look in his eyes. I want him to know he failed," spoke the voice from the haze of pain. She was unsure if she could hear the words physically or if they were spoken directly into her brain, like a robot having instructions imputed. She lay, staring up at the dome above and wondered when she had actually fallen. She could no longer feel her legs. Pressing her hand into the wound, blood seeping through her fingers, she awaited death.

Lalna had never run as fast as he did then. The path just seemed clear to him, as if someone or something had created a pathway for him to follow. It wanted him to find her. When he spotted her, miles away but clear in the rows of trees, he understood why. She was lying there, unmoving. "Pan!" he yelled, scrambling across the pines. When he reached her, he gathered her up and rested her head on his knees. He looked from her weary eyes to the hole in her stomach. Her dry lips formed a broken smile.  
"You found me." she muttered, her voice barely above a strangled whisper. He attempted to smile,  
"Of course I did." he replied. He noticed her legs had begun to dissolve ever so slowly into pixels. He didn't have much time. He examined the wound carefully, listening to her pained hisses and yelps.  
"Duncan, my cannon has already sounded. I'm already dead." she protested, a small line of blood falling from her lips. He tenderly wiped the trail away with his thumb, leaving a red smudge. She tried to smile, but it came out as a pained grimace. He held onto her hand, determined if he held on tight enough, she couldn't leave. She couldn't go. He'd tried so hard to find her. She couldn't leave him here. He couldn't do this alone again.

"I tried. I promised you that…" he protested, turning his head away, too ashamed to meet the eyes of the woman he had fought so hard to protect. He felt a soft hand against his cheek as it wiped away tears he didn't know he was shedding. It was surprised to find the skin as cold as a ghost.  
"Shh, it's ok. I was never going to get very far." she let out a humourless and pained chuckled, " It's ironic that the thing I'm worst at, when it comes down to it, is killing others." He noticed the pixels had consumed up to her waist, her arm only intact because he was holding onto it, he didn't have long.  
"You're a peace keeper, Pan, you were never meant to kill like this." he tried to smile. He couldn't keep crying. He needed to be strong for her now. He felt the grip on his hand loosen, as if she wanted to go now, but he just couldn't let her leave. There was too much to say.  
"If only you knew…" she stopped, breaking into an agonised coughing fit, blood crusting on her lips, "If only… God, Dun, it hurts. It really, really hurts!" she whined and his heart heaved,  
"It's ok.." he muttered, putting her hand on the wound and leaning over, pressing his lips to her forehead, "You can go now, Pan. I'll see you again soon, Ok?" Her dry lips smiled, a final show of affection, before her eyes rolled back in her head. Her gently ran his hand over her eyes, closing them and getting to his feet slowly, watching her body dissolve. At least she didn't have to see this hell any longer. Duncan spotted the face in the sky, but he didn't feel the despair like he should. Sjin would die, by his hand or Rythians, he didn't care. His heart felt numb, like it didn't exist any more. Slowly, with the stride of a broken man, he trudged towards his castle in the rising sunlight.  
_  
Note: So, this chapter is really short, sorry! This scene inspired this entire fic, but it made it no easier to write! I hope your feels are… almost alive. I'm going to go cry in a corner now…_


	10. Chapter 8: Do Whatever It Takes

Chapter 8: Do Whatever It Takes

The sun was finally rising. Minty had never been so glad to feel the morning rays, bringing warmth to the freezing arena night. She had seen Pan's projection in the sky and felt no remorse. She hadn't fought hard enough. She hadn't tried. Otherwise, she'd still be alive right now. Long ago she'd stumbled into the thick part of the forest in a vain attempt to reach its edge. The Sapling King still lived, so no one could travel the woods safely. As long as he was alive, he dictated everyone's paths. So, by this logic, Minty decided he had to die.

Gripping her superior dark matter blade, she charged through the forest, her hair getting snagged in thorns and branches. Maybe, when she found Martyn, she would make an example of him, as revenge for the murder of Sips. Would Sjin be proud of her? He'd told her to act like this, after all. Her gentle nature had been locked away somewhere in the crevices of her heart and her inner savage was revealed. Her gentler side was pounding at glass she couldn't break, looking through eyes that weren't hers. Her gentler side could hear Ridge laughing as he got exactly what he'd wanted from the innocent barmaid.

Minty paused. Somewhere far off, she could hear yelling.  
"Toby! Are you around here? I'm over here!"  
His voice was very distant, too far away for her to sneak up on him without stumbling into him. She guessed she was too far away for him to sense her or, perhaps, he was too distracted by Toby's apparent disappearance to care. She smiled at the usefulness of sentiment and revised her plan.  
"I'm over here Martyn! I got stuck on the other side of the fire!" spoke a second voice, this one deliciously close. She scrambled up onto an overhanging branch and waited, like a cat, for her prey. She took a moment to look up at the size of the tree she sat in. It was surely the biggest in the arena. Anything at the top could be seen from anywhere and by anyone. A smirk graced her gentle lips as she spotted the hooded boy and pounced.

**BOOM**

She withdrew the blade from the boys heart, the wound instantly burned shut by the power of the dark matter. The boy had never stood a chance.  
"Not yet, Ridge." She whispered, knowing he would be listening, "I have plans for this one yet." Knowingly, she looked up at the tree and begun collecting long vines. Somewhere close by, a cloaked figure began to laugh.

–

Sjin stumbled into the clearing where the Captive Creeper stood, gasping for breath. He'd been running since he'd killed Pandora, knowing that Lalna was around somewhere. He also faced the threat of Rythian turning up at any point. He supposed that winners always made the most enemies.

Then the cannon sounded. The fear still crept up within him. Minty was still out there, alone and vulnerable. He was desperately worried about her recently. She hadn't been acting like the Minty he loved so much. She never used to lie or act with such coldness towards the world. She was usually warm and bubbly. Something was wrong with her, and he blamed Ridge completely.

A sound echoed throughout the entire arena. At first, he had no idea what it was but then he focused his ears to the noise. A noise that was loud and maniacal. It was deranged laughter. Looking up, shielding his eyes from the sun, he could see two figures. One stood on the branch, laughing as loud as they could. Even from down here, he could see her flowing blonde hair and brown dress. Minty had killed someone. This fact shocked him perhaps even more than what he saw next. Strung up by his neck, a figure had been hung from the highest branch, clearly dead. The figure on the top branch shouted out,  
"Hey Martyn!" it begun, "I found your boyfriend!" then the laughter re-started. Sjin blinked a few times, paralysed. This wasn't Minty, he reminded himself, it couldn't be her. All great victories came with a cost. He knew this, but Minty was worth so much more to him than any victory. He would give it all up just to have her back to normal.

–

The Sapling King stood, unsure if he should shout back or sob. He was standing at the bottom of the tree Toby was hanging from. Despair clawed at him. This was his fault. Perhaps if he hadn't killed Sips, none of this would have happened. One thing he did understand, however, was the need to get Toby out of that tree. He didn't deserve a death like that.

Holding the Sapling Blade between his teeth, he began to climb the twisting vines on the trunk. If a vine did not reach, it would grow out and grab his hand, pulling him up. He couldn't fall, nature wouldn't let him. From down here, he could see a figure standing ready on the highest branch. Under her eyes was red war paint, which had created red tear lines down her cheeks. The overall effect was terrifying.

Scrambling up onto the branch, he met eyes with Toby's killer,

"What's wrong, Sapling King, sad that I killed your little boyfriend?"she laughed manically. Normally, Martyn wasn't one for violence like this but something about this comment struck him. Crying out, he charged at her, her dark matter sword struck the Sapling blade with an almighty crash of steel, the two blades hissing as they finally met.

"Does it hurt you, knowing you _failed him like this?_" she hissed, pushing Martyn back. The Sapling King recollected himself and let out a cry of rage. A frenzy of attacks followed but Minty just stood there, blocking every move. She never missed a chance to provoke him, which would just ignite his rage again. With every swing, Martyn could feel himself draining away. If he kept it up like this, he would soon tire, becoming easy prey. He needed a better plan.

Hoping Minty would not notice, he drew upon his blood power, and a vine slowly started descending towards him. Martyn continued his flurry of attacks at Minty, hoping she would not get a lucky swing that would hit him. She continued to goad him, making it easier to pretend to be angry. This was the problem with savages, they were never observant enough to see the bigger picture. He took two steps back along the branch, seeing the vine was now within reach, and he held his hand up. Instantly, the vine grabbed onto his hand and the Sapling King ran, before launching himself feet first at the barmaid. Before she could even react, Martyn felt his feet strike her frail body, and she plummeted off the edge of the great tree. With the help of nature, the Sapling King regained his footing on the branch and watched the girl fall.

Ridge had mercy on his favourite pawn. As her body fell, her hair blowing out around her, it dissolved into pixels so there was nothing left to strike the ground but a dark matter blade.

**BOOM**

Sjin watched from afar, tears in his eyes and decelerations of revenge dead on his lips, he had seen it all. So had the entire arena. Swiftly, with the grace of a panther with a stolen cub, he drove himself towards the grand tree. In the branches, a boy with a green bandanna watched the Spaceman's approach with acceptance. With a swift slice, he cut the vine holding his best friend up and watched as the body fell away,

"Rest in piece," he muttered, "I will be with you soon."

_Note: My god, the wait for this chapter was atrocious, I'm so sorry. I have so much work to do, it is not even funny. Summer Holidays next week though (finally!) so I will hopefully be finishing this fic once and for all. Also, Minty's sudden change in character might have come as a shock to a lot of you but I did drop hints, but I think you missed them. Anyway, let me know what you thought! Talk to you soon (hopefully)! _


	11. Chapter 9: Sweet Revenge

_Chapter 9: Sweet Revenge_

Martyn stood on the top branch, the Sapling blade encrusted with blood sitting in the sheath at his hip, watching Sjin climb up the vines that wound around the trunk. He could stop him, if he wished, retract the vines so he couldn't climb any higher but he didn't. Something in him died when Toby did. Pulling the blade from it's sheath, he sliced through the vines that stung up his best friend with an audible swipe, watching his body dissolve into pixels as it fell. He was ready for Sjin now.

Sjin scrambled onto the branch to face his opponent. His hair was stuck to his head with sweat and grease. His face had a reflective sheen that showed Martyn his own reflection.  
"You!" he yelled, "You killed her!"  
Martyn faced his foe and was shocked by what he saw. The sun set behind Sjin, turning him into a shadow against the horizon. The spacemen's eyes were hollow, devoid of any life, a sign he recognised.  
"You're one of the final 4," he replied calmly, "You look like it too, there's nothing left in you but death." Sjin just looked at him, anger shining from his irises like a thunderstorm on a clouded night. Martyn could see that his words were barely registering, deflected off the bulletproof shield he had created around his foam heart.  
"Congratulations, my title is yours!" Martyn declared, "Take it! See what I care!"

Below them, nature stirred. The trees sashayed from side to side, wailing like dying animals as the wind spun their branches in merciless circles. The insects returned to their little coves, too afraid to be outside any longer. Everything the Sapling King loved was dead to him now. Sjin aimed his laser, knowing if it hit there was nothing the King could do about it. The gun was shaking in his sweaty palm as it rose.  
"Go on then, Champion," the Sapling King muttered, "Save me the work." Sjin could see it in his eyes. He could see the savage tamed, as if it had never been let out of its cage. This man he needed dead so badly, was the only one left human. He tired to aim the laser but his vision kept blurring. It wasn't that he couldn't do it, he didn't want to. He didn't want the last civilized person to die. He swallowed and reaffirmed his grip. He had to do it. No one could win while nature ruled. It was Martyn or him. Nature, or the machine, life or death. His brain sent the signal to pull the trigger but his heart used its own bulletproof shell to deflect it. He couldn't do it. He wanted to, but he couldn't.

Martyn could see his reluctance and drew steadily closer. Martyn didn't want to kill anymore. He didn't have Toby, he didn't have anything to fight for any longer. The Sapling blade fell from his weak and tired hands, tumbling to the earth bellow.  
"Please, Sjin, If you ever owed me anything," he continued, drawing so close the barrel was at his chest, "I don't want to do this any more."

******BOOM**

Sjin climbed down from the tree with a heavy heart. The night had drawn in, Toby's face shining brightly, then Mintys and finally Martyn, a smile on his face. Sjin was covered in the Sapling King's blood, the sticky liquid slowly solidifying. The sadness Sjin had felt was gone now, shrivelled up with his compassion and love. He took a moment and checked his supplies, he was getting low on food, he'd have to find some. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a faint green glow and the quiet hum of a melody - the Sapling Blade.

He walked over to it and grabbed the hilt, pulling it from the earth. The green glow softly illuminated his face, showing his eyes full of sick glee. Even he could see the power this weapon held. From his forehead, a drop of the Sapling King's blood fell onto the emerald blade. On contact, the blood hissed and spat, sinking into the metal as if it belonged there. In Sjin's hands, the mighty Sapling blade turned to sand, slipping through his fingers like hope. It was not his to wield. He was not of a pure heart.

He continued onwards in the dark with no true purpose. He did not need to protect Minty or Sips. No need to watch his step for Martyn's traps. All he had to worry about were the final three: Xephos, Duncan and Rythian. Two of them had a serious grudge against him and would pay to see his head mounted on a spike. He continued walking until he reached what looked like the shoreline. The faint lights of the Crooked Caber could be seen on the horizon. Paranoia set in. This was Rythian's favourite bar. Did that mean he was here, lying in wait?

His concerns were well founded. He didn't feel the hands that pushed him over, just the taste of sand in his mouth. He didn't feel his laser leave his palm, just the warmth where there should have been cold. As quickly as he could, he rolled over, planning to look up at his attacker. He only saw a flash of purple before he was gone. With a heavy sigh, he knew his time had come.  
"Is it time for this to end now, Rythian?" he said, his voice as flat as a desert plain. His heart was empty, his life just consisting of its constant rhythm. With each steady ___thump_of his heart, he instead heard a ___boom_, like the cannon when Minty had died.

The Enderborn emerged from the shadows slowly, like a snake along the sand, purple flakes floating around his skin. His eyes glowed the brightest purple, a shade that should not have been possible for a human eye to go. If he smiled, the darkness and the mask he wore were the only things concealing it.  
"I've waited for this." he muttered, his voice less human and more beast. Sjin did not try to move. Simultaneously, every muscle in his body withered away and gave up,  
"I know you have..." he replied, his voice drowned by the waves that lapped the shoreline.

Rythian frowned, he'd obviously expected a lot more from the dying man that lie before him. He ran the tip of his red matter katar down Sjin's chest, searing the skin through the fabric, leaving it settled on his heart. The spaceman didn't even blink. He pulled the sword away, muttering something under his breath over and over again, seeming to only get more frustrated and angry with each repetition.  
"This isn't right...This isn't right," he muttered over and over. With a cry of pure hatred, he sliced the blade down, severing the joint where his arm met his shoulder. Sjin cried out briefly, only feeling the physical pain, not even fighting back. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the raw flesh and the peak of white bone where the whole thing had cut through. There was no blood, the katar had burned it shut.

Even this gave the Enderborn no satisfaction. Sjin watched as the man took two steps back, if he was at this point a man at all, then fell onto the soft sand as if he no longer had the strength to move. The glow in his eyes faded, and the flakes slotted neatly into a layer over his skin then disappeared. Rythian looked at him, but he saw nothing more than a broken man. With heavy, weary strides, Rythian picked up his weapon and marched over to him. He took a second to mumble something before plunging his sword into his throat.

******BOOM**

****Rythian looked up at the stars and felt nothing but grief. Revenge was always satisfactory, but you cannot kill what is already dead. He watched as the broken body was picked up by the encroaching tide. lifted by the soft watery bed and carried softly out to sea, dissolving as he went. He watched Ridgedog's favourite drift away to join him and still, he could hear him laughing.


	12. Chapter 10: How The Mighty Fall

Chapter 10: How the Mighty Fall.

_Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the end!_

The man in the black and cold coat stood over his chessboard with his signature smug grin wide across his face. He watched with fascination as the events folded out before him, the molten gold of his eyes shining with mirth. No sadness ever deeply affected him when any of his pawns disappeared but instead he felt the sadness akin to when a favourite character dies in a movie. It was there, but it was very temporary, little more than a momentary recoil and a slight hiss. His quiet brown haired apprentice stood on the opposite side, watching with a blank expression. She was not known to get the same kind of joy from these games as he did. Instead, she saw events as more of a character study. Often, she would use the information she gathered for aid when creating the next arena, twisting rules to make things more entertaining.

"The others wish to head down to watch the final 3," she muttered, breaking Ridgedog's captivation, "Will you be going with them? I will stay here and observe." The overseer nodded his head and walked over to the Observer, brushing a stray strand of her long hair behind her ear, ignoring her blush when he did so,

"Thank you kindly, My Dear," he responded, walking by her and donning his invisibility, whistling as he went. There could only be one winner. Now was finally the time to see who that would be.

–

Rythian breathed slowly. He watched with a small amount of horror as Sjin's blood slowly evaporated off the blade, the raw red matter slowly boiling it. There was only three of them left now: Xephos, Lalna and himself. All of them had nothing left to loose. That made them the most dangerous men. He shakily got to his feet, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up on end. He got the feeling that he was being watched. He could feel breath on his neck, hushed voices in the gloom of the tree line and pairs upon pairs of eyes watching his every movement. He was one of the final three, of course the others had decided to watch first hand, they did so every time.

Slowly, he walked along the shoreline, past where the Crooked Caber sat proudly on the ocean. He knew where he was now. His strides were long but not to be confused as a sign of determination. He just wanted this horror show to end and if that meant only one of them was left standing, then so be it. Suddenly, the dome lit up. It was well into the night, so this wasn't the fallen. Besides, no one extra had died, had they?

"For those of you remaining, the Fallen," this time, it was a female voice. Rythian looked up, perplexed.

The first thing shown was Nilsey's death. He ran up behind Minty, panting from running too far, before Sjin pecked his girl on the cheek and fired a single shot into his head. Then it was Honeydew, looking down onto the entrance to Blackrock from the second floor, talking merrily to the man he thought was his friend. Rythian faintly heard rustling and saw Xephos emerge from the forest's edge. They met eyes for a second before they both looked up to the sky. This could be settled later. Their eyes were met with Honeydew's contorted body, a bloody, broken mess on the floor outside the Blackrock doors.

Then it was Hannah. She seemed to be scouring a chest when an arrowhead suddenly protruded from her forehead, blood spraying over the camera lens.

"Wouldn't have felt a thing..." he heard Xephos mutter from over his shoulder. The spaceman closed his blue eyes and accepted the truth, before turning his gaze back up. Rythian hissed as he saw Zoey die. The laser creating a hole in her chest, her final word dead on her lips, but the ghost still danced in the air around her and he saw it:

"_Rythian"_

They witnessed Xephos sneak up on Teep and stab his diamond sword through his stomach, leaving him to bleed to death on the forest floor. A revenge for his sweet Lomadia. This was followed by Martyn and Toby creating a trap for the terrified Sips then slicing his head clean from his neck, blood decorating the Sapling Blade like leopard print. Then it was Pandora smiling as Lalna rested her hand back and settled her onto the forest floor, finally letting her go. Rythian briefly wondered how long it took her to die and he sent out a silent wave of sympathy to whatever limbo she was currently in.

The familiar haunting silhouette of Toby hanging from the great oak followed, then Minty falling to her death, Sjin giving Martyn the death he wanted, and finally Rythian himself plunging his sword through Sjin's throat. Rythian wiped hidden tears from his eyes and turned to Xephos in the early morning light.

"We have to end this now, don't we?" Rythian declared, turning to the Spaceman. His blue eyes shone out of the gloom, not glowing, just shining.

"I am afraid so, my friend," he replied, looking down. He seemed to be deep in thought for a moment.

"If we must die, let us at least end it with dignity," he muttered, as if it was a well versed quote, drawing his sword and holding the blade flat towards him. Rythian was stunned for a moment. He'd expected many things, this had not been one of them.

"Are you challenging me to a duel?" he replied, drawing his red matter katar.

"I am," he responded, his eyes never once faltering, "We shall not die like pigs stepping up for slaughter," Rythian nodded solemnly. He could hear the disgruntled mummers of the others who stood around them. They must have been unsure how to feel about this decision.

Slowly, they began to circle each other. Xephos had clearly learned his steps well, each foot placed with an ease only developed over years and years of training. His sword was held at exactly the right angles, every move he made was perfect. Rythian, on the other hand, moved haphazardly. Some could confuse it for clumsiness or inexperience but that would be their downfall. Rythian taught himself to fight, so maybe he didn't have the textbook style but instead he had developed his own. He was just as adept as Xephos but in a very different way.

Xephos, being the challenger, lunged first bringing his sword in an upward arc. Rythian relied on years of well developed instinct and parried the blow, the blades clashing with a hiss of red matter. He didn't want to kill the Spaceman but he wasn't really giving him much of choice. The Enderborn pulled his sword back before swinging it low, aiming for the spaceman's stomach. Predictably, Xephos jumped back, a slight smirk gracing his features. The diamond sword swung again, this time aiming low for where Rythian did not have any defence. He dived back, not loosing his footing, Xephos did not leave him much choice. He had to swing to kill or not at all. He grabbed a handful of sand and threw it up into the Spaceman's eyes, hoping to blind him.

Xephos took a few flustering steps back, clawing at his eyes in a vain attempt to purge the grains. Eventually, however, before Rythian could get a hit in he stabilised himself and let out a low, dark chuckle,

"Bad move, Rythian, bad move." he mumbled, assuming his stance. The Enderborn was unsure on how to proceed. Unlike Xephos, Rythian had never had never been trained to fight blind. What Rythian had thought to be an advantage was actually his biggest mistake. Slowly, like the creature of the End he was so akin too, Rythian crept around the back of the spaceman. He could hear the invisible crowd urging him on, tugging at his clothes,

"_Kill, kill, kill..."_

He pounced, like a tiger, toward the Spaceman's back hoping to catch him from behind but Xephos had been trained well. He felt the shift in the sand below his feet and heard the movement as he lunged allowing him to turn around and block the blow. The spaceman saw his opportunity and followed up with a barrage of attacks. Being blind had never stopped him, he had all the other (more powerful) senses to rely on.

Ridge watched from the shadows of the tree line, arms crossed, a wide smile on his face. Dying men did put on quite the show when he lit a fire under their feet. He watched as his companions urged on the doomed men. Some placed bets or took sides. They fought valiantly in the face of demise, he gave them that. He silently sent up a message to the Observer. He had an idea.

Within seconds, his companion was beside him. She watched with a smirk, a small spark in her eye, perhaps the brunette was getting a taste for this after all.

"You called," she muttered, her eyes following the vicious battle on the shore before them. Xephos had finally purged the sand and was fighting with renewed vigour.

"They fight well, do they not? Perfect entertainment!" He exclaimed. The Observer gave a hum of approval, well and truly fixated on the battle before them, "I think they deserve some... Recompense. If you understand my meaning."

The Observer gave a solemn nod. She'd been waiting to test this for a while, but hadn't had the chance to. She was overjoyed Ridge had given her the opportunity, but she would never show it. When Ridge looked back, the Observer had returned to the dome. She had an experiment to do.

Xephos knew how to handle a sword, Rythian gave him that. He'd been wearing him down. Where Rythian was aggressive, Xephos was precise and calm. He acted so assured of his victory. Rythian was unsure if he should admire this quality or despise it. They broke away yet again, breathing heavily. Both sides were giving it everything, afraid of defeat. That's when the ghosts came.

The first ones arrived with the beams of the rising sun, thin wisps of blue against the vibrant reds and yellows. They both watched, their duel paused, as these wisps took shape. The first turned into a short translucent figure with an orange hue. The figure appeared to grow horns but then the Spaceman realised it was just the helm of Honeydew, the dwarf. He opened his mouth to speak to Xephos, as he appeared to be the only one he could see, only to find no sound came. Ridge had granted them visitors, but only in shape, not sound. The dwarf took to walking up to Xephos and patting him on the back, a silent `well done, Friend`.

The second one that landed took a green form. Rythian watched as his precious dinosaur appeared before him and he suddenly understood why the other players could not see them. They were only seen by who they were visiting. He was lucky; he did not need to provoke the Spaceman further. Teep was used to being mute so he simply took his place off to the side of Rythian, becoming again his ever-silent protector.

Three more wisps landed next. The third one went off to the side, but the other two landed softly in the sand. One took a red shape, the other teal. Two gasps were drawn from the men as Zoey and Hannah appeared before them. Sweet smiles spread across their faces as they walked over. They seemed to understand that they could not speak. Zoey wasn't subtle as too her joy and threw herself at Rythian. He only felt a shudder as she phrased through him. Apparently there was no touching either. Hannah smoothly walked up to Xephos and sadly brushed her ghostly hand across his cheek. This seemed to trigger some emotive part of him as he began whispering over and over again,

"I am so sorry, I failed you, I'm sorry." The Owl Queen shook her head and smiled at him. Her mouth moved to create the words,

"_It's okay._"

Over to the side, only slightly along the beach, sat another two figures. One mortal, the other ghost. If the others had looked over to them, they would have seen the ghost too, as she was here to visit them all. This one had a brown hue and sat watching the sunrise with a very haggard Lalna. They understood the reality of these games. Pandora smiled at her Scientist and then leaned over and wrote in the sand:

_`The Observer wont let us stay. We have to go now. You know what to do. DON'T LET HIM WIN!`_

Almost as soon as this was written, all of the figures evaporated, leaving only the three men alone on the beach.

At first both men were at a loss as to what to do but eventually the two picked up their swords and resumed their fight. This time, they had purpose. They had people to fight to get home too. After a while it became apparent that the two were evenly matched. Rythian had the endurance to push past Xephos' goading and Xephos had the patience to combat Rythian. It appeared they were going to enter a never ending duel.

Ridge could see how this was going. He'd seen many duels like it, where both opponents were equally matched. Every time, someone had to intervene or the match would never end or worse, they would call a draw. That didn't make for the entertainment his guests required. He dove into the inside pocket of his coat and withdrew one of his chess pieces. He had bought them all with him, should they be required. This one was a bishop, a glorious red colour, representing Rythian's precious apprentice. He smiled at the piece before throwing it towards the duo. He hoped it would have the effect he needed.

–

Rythian bought his sword back, preparing to clash with Xephos yet again. He supposed he could use his magic to win, but duels were about honour and that would be cheating. Then, out of the corner of his eye he saw a red stone approaching the space between the two of them. When it hit the sand, red wisps seethed from it. In a second, the ghostly form of his apprentice stood before him, mouth dropped open in shock. Rythian froze, all colour draining from his face. Xephos could not see this, so took it as a moment of sudden exhaustion. Without thinking twice, Xephos ran the Enderborn through before stabbing him in the head.

**BOOM**

Xephos sighed, watching the Enderborn's body evaporate. He could hear the cheers of half of the crowd. This wasn't right. He had no quarrel with Rythian, he had no reason to kill him. At least he had tried to give him a noble death.

"So it's just us left then, is it?"

The spaceman turned to see Lalna approaching him. He had Pandora's musket swung over his shoulder and his hands in his pockets. In all of their time working together, Xephos had never seen the man so very tired.

"Don't tell me I have to duel you too." he gasped, wiping sweat from his brow. As if expecting drama, rain began pouring down around them. It cleaned the diamond sword in the Xephos' hand, creating a red circle around where he stood. A red spot, the sign of a killer. The sand around Lalna's feet remained pure. He hadn't actually killed anyone.

The scientist shook his head and proffered his best broken smile.

"Thankfully, that wont be necessary." he muttered. Steadily, he reached over and carefully lifted the tip of the diamond sword to sit at his chest. Xephos looked aghast,

"Wha-"

"Rythian and you didn't get it," Lalna interrupted, his eyes hard and focused. The rain hammered down around them but neither noticed,

"You gave into the necessity of killing. You fed Ridge exactly what he wanted of you, you're letting him win. Martyn was the last one to understand this, and Pandora before him," he continued, not pausing for breath, "Don't give him a show. Give him an ending."

Xephos looked at his friend for a moment, slowly understanding his meaning. This was his friend, the wisest, why did he have to kill him?

"Why should I kill you? Why not myself, that would also work to your design," he said aloud. Lalna shook his head,

"Because I made promises to other people and I failed. I cannot go on to win having failed them so severely,"

Xephos swallowed loudly, bracing himself, before nodding. Lalna closed his blue eyes, filling his ears with the sounds of the other's outcry. This was how this was going to end. No more survival. No more revenge. No victory. Just an end and nothing else. With a final push, the spaceman shoved his sword into his friend's chest, tears in his eyes.

**BOOM**

Ridge watched, a bitter taste on his lips. All of his friends stood in shock, unsure of what to say. He sighed, shook his head and cursed the scientist for truly winning. Putting on his best smile and emerging from the forest no longer invisible, he approached Xephos who was on his knees in the pool of blood crying,

"Congratulations," he declared, "You, Xephos, are the winner!"

_AN: AND IT'S FINALLY DONE!_

_I would put a long note here, but how about I save that for the epilogue, eh? _

_Yes, there is an epilogue. _

_Well, don't you want to know what happens when they wake up?_

_No?_

_Well I do, so deal with it._

_(I eagerly await your recording Miss Wolf ;) )_


End file.
